Radio battery charger



Patented May 1928.

, UNITED STATES i maar PATENT orare.

ARNOLD SOBERG, OIF MOHALL,-NORTE DAKOTA.

RAnIo BATTERY CHARGER.

Application led lune 11, 1926. Serial No. 115,197.

for the charging of radio batteries, but its lI usefulness is not confined to that field.

The invention may be understood by reference to one illustrative embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of the apparatus.;'

Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1, illustrating the gearing for driving the generator.

At the present time the useiof radios 1n rural communities is widespread, being found even on the most isolated farms. One of the chief drawbacks to radios has been the frequency with which the batteries must be recharged, especially when they are in frequent use during long winter evenings, when reception is particularly satisfactory. As most farms are not provided with electric power, it 'is'necessary for the farmers to travel to the nearest town having battery charging facilities. Such travel is frequently impossible during winter months in Northern States because the roads are blocked with snow drifts.

about that at the time when the need for recharging the batteries most frequently arises, it is most difcultto effect such recharging. Myinvention provides a dependable but inexpensive apparatus capable of recharging storage batteries during the most severe 4.0 weather conditions and in the most isolated communities. l .v

Referringto'the drawnings, there is shown the upper portion f a windmill tower 5 which, being of well known construction, is

not fully illustrated. Such a tower may bev supported -upon the Y."'ground conveniently Y -near the farm house, or it may be made fast to the roof of the'farm house or barn. Upon the support 5 awindmill 6 is mounted to turn with the wind. The mounting shown includes a column 7 secured at its lower end to a base 8 made' lfast to the support 5 and a tube 9 secured into the body 10 'of the windmill and passing through -the column 7,

upward movement of the windmill being prevented by a collar 11 secured by a set lbody 10. The generator screw to the lower end of the tube 9 and of suiicient diameter to overlap the lower end of the column 7 and engage the base 8. The described construction permits the windmill to rotate freely about the longitudinal axis of the vertical column 7 with said column supporting the windmill. A vane 12 secured by plates 13 to the body 10 permits the windmill to turn responsive to the direction of the 05 vwind. The parts so far described are no part of my'invention but form a part of an operative structure. L

The body 10 of the windmill is preferably provided by a single casting having a screw threaded bore 14 for the tube 9, as shown, and having al longitudinal bore 15 extending horizontally when the windmill is in position so as to receive the windmill shaft 16. In order to take the thrust of the windmill shaft, thrust bearings 17, 18 arepseeured at o posite ends of the bore 15, and because o their economy and low friction characteristics'I prefer to use they turned cone type of ball bearings shown in the drawings.`80 Such bearings carry bothJ the radial and thrust loads of the. shaft and are well adapted for heavy service. I

At the inner end of the shaft 16 a worm gear 19 is provided, said worm ear being of that type which may be used or driving a Worm. In order to hold the ball bearings .against displacement, there is a boss or hub Thus it comes 20 on worm gear 19 which fits over the shaft 16 and is abutted against the ball bearing 18 while at the other end of the shaft a collar 21 abuts the ball bearing 17.

The worm gear 19 is used to drive the shaft .22 of a direct current generator 23 which is enclosed within a casing 24 secured by screws to the top of the bod 10. As shown, the generator is arranger? with its shaft vertical, extending downwardly into' the gear compartment 25 provided by the shaft 22 is supported by two thrust bearings 26, 27 which. are similiar to those used, for the windmill shaft so as to take the thrust of the rotor of the generator as well as the radial load due to the thrust of the worm wheel upon the worm 28.

tom of the casting 10.., To supply the gear compartment with oil a force-feed fitting 31 may be screwed into the upper wall of the body so that the gear compartment may be ke t substantially full of oil, thereby suppl mg the bearings .with oil so that the win mill will operate efficiently after years of service exposedto the weather. y

The generated current Iis conducted by Wires 32, Preferably being led through the interior o the tube 9 to an automatic lcutof 33 lincluding` a switch V(not shown). Such' a cut-off is obtainable on the market and servesto prevent o'vercharging of the battery 34 and also to prevent the battery from discharging and running the generator-as a motor.

` very simple,

The described apparatus 1s mechanically due to the use of the worm gearing and to the placing of thegenerator above'the housing. Thus while the generator is driven very fast as is necessary, there is no complicated train of gears which would necessitate a large number of bearings, a11 possible sources of trouble, especially after long exposure to the weather. The generator is completely protected from the possibility of a short circuit due to moisture and 1t Iis also removed from the 'oil bath although its bearings are amply lubricated. In operation, the worm' wheel will,

lash oil about qthe upper bearing 26, even cant. Obviously the present invention is not restricted lto the particular embodiment thglelclif herein shown and described.

atIclaim is: l 1. Battery charging apparatus compriss t ough the casing vis not filled withlubriname to this'specification.

Leashes ing, in combination, a, windmillza direct 40 current enerator carried upon the body of the win mill with its shaft vertical; thrust ball bearings sustaining the generator" shaft; a worm on the shaft and .between the ball bearings; a horizontal windmill shaft; a worm gear on the windmill shaft; thrust balLbearings for the windmill shaft, the parts being so constructed and arranged that the Windmill drives the generator-shaft.

2. Battery charging apparatus comprising, yin combination, a casting.; a bore in the casting; a windmill; a windmill shaft extending through the bore; thrust bearings in the bore at the opposite' ends; a generator secured to the top of the casting with its 55 shaft vertical; gearing. connecting the windl,mill shaft with tlre .@,generator'shaftg and as housing for the earing forming an oiltight reservoir -widereby the bearings and gears run in a bathof oil.

3. Battery charging apparatus comprising, in combinationfatower-like supporting" structure; a casting at the top of said struc- .ture and so mounted as to vturn thereon in a horizontal plane; a Windmill having'its shaft passing through said casting; a generator carried on the casting above the windmill shaft and with its axisvertical; gearing connecting the generator and'y windmill shaft; said casting having an opening inv one side to give access to the. gearing and anotherv opening to five^ access to the bearings; covers forsai openings; and a vane secured to the casting to cause the Windmill t to move into the wind.-

v 'l5 In testimony whereof, I have signed my ARNOLD soBEBG. 

